OlivAI groaned a bit with pain as she opened her eyes, though it was hard to tell they were even open. The room around her was so dark, that she didn't know if she was still asleep and this was some sort of weird dream she was experiencing.
Then she heard his voice.
"OlivAI…my…systems tell me…that you are awake…answer: are you all right?" Tres asked; between most of his words she heard a pained pause and a small bit of static.
"Tres…Tres you're hurt…" she murmured; her head was still throbbing from the blow she'd suffered, though the pain was dulled by now. She tried to move but found she could not; her wrists and ankles were bound to whatever surface she was on, allowing her no movement except in her neck.
"Positive…HC-IIX has disabled my auto-repair system; though my arms were nearly repaired…my processor…is still malfunctioning. I cannot ascertain where he has brought us…" Tres replied. OlivAI's stomach sank with how tired and anguished he sounded.
"You just worry about retaining your energy, Tres…" OlivAI replied; she wanted nothing else more right now than to just hold him and comfort him through his pain. "We'll find a way out of this, I promise…just hang on and don't fall into recharge, okay? Your body is low on energy and might not be able to restart if you do again…"
"Affirmative."
This voice was not Tres's.
Duo Iqus suddenly switched on a light, and suddenly the entire chamber was bathed in an overpowering white light that about blinded OlivAI; she had to shut her eyes and then reopen them slowly to adjust herself. When she did, Duo was standing over her, looking down at her eerily.
Tres grunted again, trying to free himself from his own bindings, but they were made from heavily reinforced steel to compensate for his enhanced strength. He was restrained in an upright sitting position, whereas OlivAI was lying on her back. She glared death at Duo.
Duo reached out and carefully traced his gloved hand along OlivAI's face, even as she growled up at him. The stain of her blood on his glove was still there. "This female has triggered faulty responses in your programming. When we were created, Dr. Garibaldi intended for us to be sentient…that was why we were his children. But the Inquisition did not want sentient soldiers, they wanted killing machines…and so, the doctor gave them what they desired," Duo said. "But this female has awakened the obsolete programming that he never finished within us, thus deluding your Killing Doll programming further, HC-IIIX. Your data has become corrupt via intrusive memories and sensations. You have ceased functioning to your designated potential; thus, I am now forced to take action, since you did not heed my warning in the courtyard two days prior."
OlivAI narrowed her eyes. "You were the one who triggered the alarm system…" she sneered.
"Positive. HC-IIIX would not have left your side for anything less. But I have studied his patterns and knew that he would respond by going to the side of Cardinal Sforza," he replied. "Thus, I was able to catch him off guard and separate your beings from one another."
"You are not superior; only dedicated to now obsolete programming, HC-IIX," Tres replied. "If you harbor negativity towards me, then let it be directed solely at my being. Release OlivAI."
"I would not have involved her if she were not the problem, brother…" Duo replied, smiling darkly to Tres. "Her love for you has overwhelmed your processor. I must fix the damage she has brought to you, and then she will be euthanized, or subdued permanently."
OlivAI cringed. "Why are you doing this? Why are you tormenting the two of us so much?" she asked. "Answer me!"
"The remainder of my siblings were murdered by Agent Abel Nightroad, codename Krusnik. His actions led to their deaths, and to the suicide of our creator, Dr. Garibaldi. He has destroyed all that we were made to do; thus, he must be destroyed in turn," Duo Iqus replied. "I am not powerful enough to destroy the Krusnik on my own, however; I must have my brother's aid to enact revenge, and the help of others that share in similar goals."
"I will not comply," Tres responded harshly. "Your programming is the one that has become corrupted with assuming the need to enact revenge. Dr. Garibaldi's actions were not attuned to the Vatican's mission, and he betrayed them. Thus, he died a criminal by his own hands."
"He was still our creator, HC-IIIX. He gave us our existence, breathed life into once empty machines. He cared for us like his own children…" Duo said, as he turned from OlivAI and began to approach Tres. "Therefore we must carry on his dream as the perfect killing machines. As he cared for us, I care for you, brother. The force I used was necessary; you are too flawed now to see reason."
Duo Iqus, however, reached up behind his neck, and suddenly removed one end of a cable from his own processor. Tres's eyes widened slightly. "Therefore, I will repair you, brother. I will delete all of the useless memories and data from your cluttered mind, and once again repress those useless traces of emotion for good this time. You will revert to your previous programming and abide by my orders as your older brother, HC-IIIX."
With that, he approached and began to place the cable into a receptor; there was a port built into Tres's neck, along the back near his hairline. He had several down his spine, but that one was the external link into his processor. Tres attempted to move away, but he was restrained. OlivAI cried out in fear for him. "I have taken a virus program that was originally created by the Vatican if we were ever to become rogue, back when we were first being developed. I have modified it so that you will revert to your original programming. We will be comrades once again, and will exist only for our mission."
"No, you can't, leave him alone!" she shouted, trying to free herself from her own bindings.
But she could not, and Duo leaned over Tres and placed the cable into the port.
Tres immediately cried out with anguish as the virus immediately implanted itself into his programming. He tried to writhe it out of him, but Duo pressed one of his hands against Tres's face, over his eyes, pinning his head back hard against the broken and stripped hospital bed that had been coverted into his restraints. OlivAI could only watch helplessly and in horror. Tres released more sounds of pain as his programming began to warp within his mind, and his hands clenched the arm rests they were bound to so tightly that the metal started to warp.
Virus detected. Firewall initiated…attempt to quarantine virus has failed.
Programming has been compromised; specifications being remade. Corrupt data being removed to storage for future deletion.
95% of memory data being moved to storage for future deletion.
Returning to default – engage automaton mode. Retain all combat data. Initializing…
"Tres…no…" OlivAI murmured; a few tears hung in her eyes and she could feel a couple stream down her face.
Duo hovered over his brother with that eerie smirk as Tres's expression slowly transitioned from one of strain to a relaxed, but cold, gaze once more. Duo unplugged himself from Tres's processor once he could detect the virus had done its work.
He reached down and pressed the release on Tres's restraints, freeing him from the table.
"It is done; your programming has now been reinstalled to its default once more. Answer: How are you feeling now, HC-IIIX?" Duo asked him softly.
Tres moved with a deftness that OlivAI recognized; it was similar to when they had first met, and he had been operating solely on his directive, except…even more so now. Tres stood from his captive instrument and looked to his brother.
"I am functioning now at 90% energy capacity. I await further instruction," he replied.
Duo's smile increased faintly. "I wish to welcome you back to your original programming, brother," he said, reaching up and toying slightly with Tres's cables and wires, which primarily ran down the back of his neck. He had only one that curved up the back of his ear almost invisibly. "You know our mission now; that is what we will follow. But first, I must make a request of you. Do you remember this girl?" he asked, turning and pointing to OlivAI.
She gasped slightly and looked up at Tres silently; she still had some tears in her eyes and now could feel her blood running cold with terror. Tres turned and looked down at her, coldly. He didn't say anything for what felt like the longest time, but OlivAI could not plead.
"Positive. Identified as OlivAI; other aliases: Krusnik 05," Tres replied, his tone was literally devoid of emotion.
"That is correct. Now we must determine what to do with her. What do you think?" Duo asked him.
OlivAI couldn't help but whimper slightly as Tres looked over her; she was still injured and a mess. He was silent for a moment before he turned to face Duo. "My memory stores indicate that she is of some level of importance; therefore extermination is not advised. My sensors also indicate that she is with child, and therefore classified as both vulnerable and an invalid. Our orders remain to eliminate all armed forces within the Vatican in order to usurp the rule of the Pope and Cardinals…but civilians shall not be harmed. Her classification…means that I am designated to protect her. Few remaining memory stores indicate that she is soon to be my wife."
Duo frowned a bit. "I see that some of those old memories are still within you, HC-IIIX…but if you wish to spare a single measly mortal, then so be it," he replied, reaching out, and pressing another release to undo her bindings.
OlivAI immediately sat up, only to feel light-headed and nauseous the second that she did; she started to topple back towards the bed.
She was caught, however, by Tres, who was standing at the end of the table and cradled her head in his hands. He looked down at her with a measured expression…and yet, she saw some softness in it. "You must not move. You are wounded, OlivAI."
"Tres…you do remember me…" she said softly.
"Positive. We are to be wed in 35 hours and 27 minutes time. The marriage will still commence, but it will be done in a new age for the world," he replied.
OlivAI felt like her breath was caught in her throat. "New age…no, Tres! You cannot follow that programming!" she shouted, forcing herself to sit up so she was turned halfway to face him. "Please, Duo has placed this programming into you simply for his own selfish purposes, he only wants to do this for revenge!"
"Positive, and it will be commenced," Tres replied coldly. "This is the true nature of our programming; we are machines, and we were created to kill, so we must complete our function. Once it is completed, then we will achieve true peace and conflict will cease."
"You cannot stop conflict by killing everyone…" OlivAI murmured.
"Correct; that is why we will not kill everyone," Duo informed her. "We will spare those that submit to us. We are superior beings, handmade by the Vatican's own scientist Dr. Garibaldi. We will achieve his dream and thus our own. Those who submit will be spared and subjected to our new order; the rest will be destroyed."
"I will protect you from them, OlivAI," Tres suddenly said. "If you are in our company you will be marked as defected as well, but no harm will come to you. We will still be wed as has already been planned, and will live in a world where we will no longer be viewed as monsters, nor outsiders."
"Tres…no, it cannot be this way…" OlivAI choked.
"It must. The world will not be safe for you in its current state. The Rosencreutz Orden intends to do the same, and the races are always at war. What we intend is not so different."
"The Rosencreutz Orden…" OlivAI breathed. "Tres, you cannot go along with this, they are evil and they will kill everyone no matter if they submit or not, you are different from them…!"
"Negative; the Rosencreutz Orden are the ones who relieved me of my programming to the Inquisition…" Duo replied. "Their mission correlates with ours. We will exact our revenge and remove all inferior specimen from the world; they have polluted and tarnished this planet long enough. It is time for a new beginning, and you are fortunate enough to remain a part of it OlivAI."
"Our wedding will commence the new world, OlivAI…the Orden has already placed into motion the necessary instruments to begin worldwide genocide. We will remove the figureheads of all the kingdoms and their nations will be thrown into chaos. The Orden will then remove all who resist the New Order," Tres explained; he gently stroked her cheeks, which made his words all the more eerie as he spoke them to her.
OlivAI's eyes widened. The nation's leaders…
"Yes, your wedding has given ample opportunity to eliminate all of them in one violent pinnacle, OlivAI…since they will all be in attendance. To think that they orchestrated all of this and used the two of you in the name of peace, and now will be terminated instead…" Duo smiled. "You will say your Holy vows and the Orden and I will be waiting in the wings for our cue…then, they will die."
"And just what makes you think that I will not simply warn them of what is going to happen?!" OlivAI hissed at them. Tres's touch was still gentle but she still tried to wriggle out of it.
"Oh, that part is very simple, OlivAI…you see, when I reactivated my younger brother's original operating system, I also initiated his self-destruct sequence. The doctor had a failsafe installed into us in case we ever defied our programming and attempted to harm him. I will be able to hear everything you say, and see every gesture you make and everything you may write or create while you are around HC-IIIX, and he will no longer allow you to leave his side. If I overhear you revealing our plans to a single soul, then I will destroy your beloved," Duo said to her; OlivAI's eyes widened and she took in a sharp gasp of air.
Tres did not respond, but he seemed to be a willing part of it since he did not protest. "Our plans can continue in his absence; if you do not do as I say, then he will die as well."
OlivAI felt like her entire world was crumbling around her, but she couldn't bring herself to say anything. Duo smirked and traced a finger under her chin even as Tres helped her sit up, his hands on her shoulders.
"You will submit, Krusnik…and you will watch your two siblings die in the hell that is to come, or you will lose literally everyone you love. Answer: do you understand?"
OlivAI could only shake, and nod so pitifully small. "Good, you've made a wise decision, Krusnik. As for now, you two are going to go back and live your lives the way you did before…only now you harbor a horrible secret that you will reveal to no one. You are simply fortunate that HC-IIIX still wants your body and soul, and the Contra Mundi wants your child, or I would have simply exterminated you…"
OlivAI winced and looked away from him. "Take her back to your room and dress her wounds, brother…do not forget the plan, but do not deviate from your previous habits. We do not want to arouse suspicion."
Tres nodded, and carefully lifted OlivAI from the table into his arms. Even knowing that he was altered now, she still curled up against him.
It was snowing heavily outside, and she did not pay attention to how far they walked back into the walled city, but it felt like a long time. As in the catacombs, Tres used his body heat to keep her warm and held her close.
Once they were in their room, Tres carefully set her on their bed and then retrieved some first aid supplies from the washroom across the hall. He cleaned the wound on the back of her head and taped some gauze to it with a careful precision. She watched him sharply the entire time.
Tres seemed to notice her demeanor. "Do not try to reason with me; my mission is already established, OlivAI. In the washroom earlier, you were upset…because the world cannot accept us. In the world that will come, we will no longer be detested, nor fear for our existence. We will have true happiness," he said to her softly, taking her hand and holding it to his lips. She could feel the warmth of them against her flesh as he spoke. "You will suffer no more. I will protect you forever."
"Tres…what sort of world will we have together if…if all of our friends are dead…?" she choked. "If my family that I've just met is gone? I will wither without them…"
"Negative; I will give you all that you need," Tres replied, his voice stern, commanding. "You will not lack in affection nor love. I will give you anything that you need or simply want."
"Tres…" she closed her eyes. "Please…"
"My mission is already in motion…" he replied; she suddenly realized that he was beginning to loom over her a bit, and backed up. The way he moved, however, forced her to lie down on her back. He laid over her so that his hands were pressed against the softness of his bed just above her shoulders, and his body hovered just above hers. It would have been a purely sensual motion, if he were not possessed. Even as she looked up into his eyes, she could see the crimson glint of his brother's programming in his mind.
"I cannot feel the love that you feel for me, OlivAI…I am a machine and cannot receive the same sensations, but I know that you feel it, that you give yourself to me, and I will do the same to the fullest of my abilities…"
"Tres, I always knew this…but I accepted it regardless of the world around us…" she replied softly.
Tres did not reply, however; he simply bent down and kissed her deeply on the lips. OlivAI didn't have much of a choice but to return it, but like before it still fueled a deep warmth within her.
"You must rest; your injury has caused significant blood loss. Please rest against me," he said once he parted from her; he laid down on his side and gathered her into his arms so that he was spooning her against his much larger form. With his arms around her, he was literally enveloping her much smaller body with his.
It still made her safe…and she still loved him. But knowing the truth, deep inside…about what had been done to him, about what was going to happen on their wedding day…how…how was she ever going to warn them of what would happen?
She then realized why he was lying in this position; she would not be able to leave while he was in recharge mode and warn anyone when he could not monitor her. Even his arms were burdened with a great weight, and she found he had literally bound her there with him using his own form.
"I apologize for this, but you must be kept with me at all times," Tres explained, before he automatically went into his offline mode to rest. With his arms dead weight, it was even more oppressive, though merely in that she could not move. He had purposely positioned himself so that it would not hinder her breathing nor comfort.
But she found she couldn't truly sleep. How could she, knowing all of this?